Pregnancy is a very exciting and anxious period for expectant mothers and fathers from the very beginning. Even with the first heartbeats of the baby, one of the first questions that comes to the minds of expectant parents is ‘Normal birth or cesarean section?’ and occupies their minds throughout the pregnancy. As the process progresses in this way, although expectant mothers and fathers make a choice about how the birth will be, in fact, the birth will vary according to the condition of the baby, the structure of the pregnancy and the decision of the physician. It is important to remember that normal or caesarean birth is not superior to each other. The type of delivery should be determined according to the condition of the baby and the mother.
During pregnancy, the body of the expectant mother prepares itself for the development of the baby and birth. If the conditions are appropriate, the body of the expectant mother is physiologically programmed for normal birth. Although the mother who is awake during labor writhes in pain, she experiences the pleasure of the baby’s exit, the first cry she hears and the pleasure of being able to touch her baby as soon as it is born. This is a unique experience for a woman. After the birth, the mother can quickly return to her daily life and take care of her baby without anyone’s help. Women who give birth normally can take a bath on the same day, even if they have had an episiotomy and stitches. After a normal delivery, it is easier for the milk to come in, for the baby to learn to suck and for the mother to return to her ideal weight. Normal birth does not cause intra-abdominal adhesions that can occur in cesarean section. Each normal birth is easier than the previous one and takes place without stitches. In contrast to all these advantages, prolonged contractions, the intensity of the pain and the deformations that may occur in the vaginal area during labor should also be taken into consideration. These deformations will affect the daily and social life of the person with age and may cause problems such as urinary incontinence, decreased sexual pleasure, sagging uterus. There may also be unforeseen and unpreventable complications such as shoulder impingement during normal delivery.
Caesarean section is a surgical operation in which an incision is made in the womb to remove the baby. Like any surgery, there are risks. Since the mother is anesthetized, she does not feel pain and the baby is removed from the abdomen with minimal risk. Although anesthesia and the mother’s lack of pain may seem like an instant advantage, the mother needs to take care of herself and receive care and support for a while after the operation. The mother may not be able to take care of her baby alone for an average of 2 weeks. If a caesarean section was performed with general anesthesia, delays may occur in situations such as burping, eating and breastfeeding the baby. The hospital stay and the time for the mother to return to her daily life is longer than in a normal delivery. If a caesarean section is performed with epidural anesthesia, it is possible to witness the moment of birth, breastfeed the baby immediately, and control the pain of surgery, but a caesarean section should not be the first method of delivery. However, it is also not right to declare war on caesarean section, to oppose it completely, and to force difficult birth cases to normal birth.
As a result; If the conditions are appropriate, physiology should not be opposed and normal birth should be tried. However, it is not right to declare war on cesarean section and force every birth to normal!!!